We first told you about Saracen’s new Myst downhill bike way back in February when it was still in the prototype phase, but now we can show you the production model in all its glory.
Saracen brand manager Simon Wild has high hopes for the Myst, which is the product of over 10 years of design and will be used next year on the World Cup circuit by a soon-to-be-announced new team.
Wild told us: “It’s built as a privateer race bike, with the emphasis on getting more people into the sport. Downhill is pretty elitist. Hidden in this privateer package is a World Cup ready chassis.”
The Myst offers 203mm of rear wheel travel via a single pivot and linkage driven shock. The main pivot runs on a 20mm axle while the other pivots run on 15mm axles for a stiff, durable setup.
“Typically on downhill bikes, the rear shock has up/down movement of 6-12 degrees," said Wild. "On the Myst this is down to 0.56 degrees and 80 percent of this change is in the sag, so through the range of usable travel it’s a near perfect linear push. This means there’s almost no loading on the shock bushings.”
The full bike will cost just £2,299.99 with a RockShox Boxxer Race fork, Fox Van R rear shock, nine-speed shifting, Quad Deuce DH brakes, FSA Gap chainset, sealed bearing hubs and own-brand rims. A Funn bar and stem finish off the package. The spec is “nothing daft, just stuff that works", according to Wild.
The Myst frame is also available on its own for £1,399.99, with an upgraded Fox DHX RC2 shock. First deliveries of the bikes are imminent, so stay tuned for availability details plus information on the race team.